It’s bad enough when the Dumb Fucking Morons are the majority of the opposition party. It’s FUCKING TERRIBLE when the dumbfucks claim they’re members of the same political party you’re registered to vote in. Over the past year, it’s gotten boring calling out stupid polls run by idiots out to create clickbait for whatever failing media organization plans to monetize the results of the poll and make enough “profit” that the intergalactic widget maker that owns them can sell them to the first rube who comes around the corner. There have also been plenty of “outlier” polls to get upset with, commissioned by entitled trust fund heirs like A.G. Sulzberger, who’s offended President Biden won’t give him an exclusive interview.
Yes I’ve become a great fan of Rick Wilson and also loved the quotation. I perceive the rub to be that pesky phrase ‘actual fact.’ We’re now living in a universe where if you can actually find an actual fact that most people can agree on…then be really nervous if u believe it. So I’ll give an example. The whole concept of peaceful exchange of power. Wow. I so remember what a quiet treasure that was. How the world could notice that’s what the USA could do reliably. The fact that we have GOP bozos dressed to look like clones of orange monster and rushing to kiss his ring…well to me that says the true horror of where we have landed…it’s worse than any apocalypse we could have envisioned. Much worse— why? Because it’s not going away.
Food prices are and have been very weird for quite some time. Yes this hurts Biden and frankly, I believe what many think of as our pesky inflation has been largely produced by blatant larceny of business taking extra profits where they can get away with it after the huge losses tallied during Covid years.
They are creating inflation, (greedflation, as Robert Reich calls it), to rile up the masses, as if Biden has any control over what any industry charges, just to pump up Trump to win, so we do not need a destructive, profit wasting insurection to to get the Krystofscist in control for unlimited profits later.
The GOP bozos look like minions out of the movie. They look bizarre, and frankly pathetic. As lawmakers, they have NO business inserting themselves into a criminal trial. Trump's family won't even come to sit with him. Therefore, Trump insists his little minions come be supportive. They didn't come until ordered to do so.
yeah. for some reason, our "media" has real problems with discussing price gouging. is it possible they do so because the price gougers consider the "content" to be a convenient delivery system for advertising; the advertising, on top of everything else, tends to be flogging new copycat pharmaceuticals, possibly the biggest scam of all.
As I've often said Tom, I have ZERO belief in polls. If they want me to have a modicum of concern fore their "findings" they'd better be prepared to release their question verbatim "Trade Secrets"? Irrelevant what they ask today is yesterdays news tomorrow. Exactly how many persons were in the polls AND which States and which areas in those States were polled. We are a nation of ~340,000,000 people spreading from the Atlantic Coast to Hawaii ~2,286 miles into the Pacific Ocean and Alaska ~ 500 miles north of the mainland. So, how many were polled in each State.
Yes I studied statistics in college - I'm a science major, no choice. But as a science major I also know you can "prove" anything you want with a mouse. (A favorite saying in upper level physiology) Like polls, it's how you choose your subject. When the sugar industry wanted to "prove" saccharine was detrimental to your health, they hired a scientist who purchased a strain of mice susceptible to carcinoma. He fed them 10X the maximum amount of saccharine consumed by a normal human being in one day. Voila! they all came down with cancer.
So you only poll those who don't hang up on you. You ask only questions that have yes or no answers, no explanations allowed. Voila! The poll results you expected.
BLESS YOU FAY!!❤️❤️❤️❤️I have been complaining about polls for so long and you say it so clearly. Please send this letter everywhere you can think of, especially whitehouse.gov
My favorite stupid question is something like “ do you think America is in a good place?” Hell no, but it’s taken as an anti-Biden answer. THREE little words in the report would make such a difference. In a poll OF 1000 PEOPLE.
P.S.—Can we agree to have 1 rant a week then calm down? Our votes are needed in a few months. Stupidity is probably part of the MAGat plan to make us stark raving crazy.
One of my favorite quotes attributed to Mark Twain but there is some question as to its actual origins, since 1891... very interesting reading if you wanna go down that rabbithole:
This:➡️ “ Yes I studied statistics in college - I'm a science major, no choice. But as a science major I also know you can "prove" anything you want with a mouse.”
The only thing I remember from biostatistics was the prof saying you could “use” statistics to get to your preferred outcome.
Sorry to distract you with reality, but Reagan was just a face. Presented to the TV watching intelectual folks who watched GE Theater, hosted by the sweet and calming Ronnie Raygun, to get all adjusted to his loveable persona. General Electric, the largest, deepest dive into what was the Military Industrial Comlpex that required perpetual war, or it's massive preparations to to maintain proffit margins unheard of in an otherwise free market place. He was the face of the globalist Fascist industrial machine that tried the same in the 1920s with another face, Adolf Hitler. The t-Rump of today is only their latest face. Capiche?
Her rich daddy, and then the head PR guy at GE when he got hired at General Electric Theater. The guy was one of the pro-fascists from back in the 30s.
One more thing, Don. I'd piss on the motherfuker's grave if I could get there too. I appeciate your fellings. But it is so much more than that smilin'shit for brains.
Read “Democracy in Chains” by Nancy MacLean. The Libertarian fascists organized by Charles Koch have been at this since Nixon’s Watergate sent him in exile. As Hilary Clinton said, it’s a widespread, right-wing conspiracy, 45 years in the making.
“The whole aim of practical politics is to keep the populace alarmed (and hence clamorous to be led to safety) by menacing it with an endless series of hobgoblins, all of them imaginary.”
Tom, you are so right! I watch the ongoing Fever Dream from my perch in Vancouver, and I wonder how so many Americans became so ignorant. As you say, the fault lies on how they get their information, and how little they seem to dig deeper, when so much information is available. Consuming news from social media is guaranteed to pollute the brain.
My first 21 years were spent in the U.S., and I learned over time how poorly we were taught history, or to think critically. Still, we did take classes in civics, and those who chose to investigate on their own, leaned how much was kept from us. Today, it's sheer laziness that results in the lack of knowledge that permeates the culture.
In the book Megatrends, John Naisbitt wrote "we are drowning in information, but starved for knowledge." He wrote that 42 years ago.
Sadly, the approach to teaching critical thinking that was settled upon by several generations (after mine, or course) was simple. To anything that has science or learned consensus behind it, say "Yeh, but." It caught on to encourage children to question, to doubt authority. We didn't do so well with the critical steps: How to listen to and analyze contrary thought and integrate such added information/evidence so obtained into truthfilled knowledge. We ended up with question generators instead of educated consumers of knowledge. We settled for foxes when we could be flying with eagles.
I'm not quite sure why you're in such a twist over this, even assuming that a big percentage of people get their 'news impressions' from social media.
It is completely obvious that 95% of media are conservative (especially AM Radio out in the boonies, but also all the respectable media - the three major broadcast networks, the 4-5 major newspapers, etc), and they look forward to a big 'contest' in November, and they don't mind at all if Trump wins.
But even if 50% of Democrats believe the doomsayers who constantly claim the country is in a disastrous position, they're still not going to vote for Trump in November. (Even setting aside the issue that the president has very little influence over the price of coffee in Peoria).
The Biden campaign team has to convince a healthy percentage of Independents in about six states to vote for Biden - it's a very narrowly focused agenda it seems to me; the result could be as tight as 270-268.
What amazes me more, is that nearly half the population seems prepared to vote for Trump ... have they no decency?
And that 270-268 outcome could be even more dangerous, as Josh Marshall points out today at TPM. They will be MORE LIKELY to attempt a coup that could be successful with a close result.
Indeed ... they tried a coup last time after a pretty solid numerical loss. At least this time Trump doesn't have control of the levers of government, or the military, or law enforcement, and Mike Pence isn't Vice President. But it could still be pretty tense I expect, because non-acceptance of the result is now built into the mix.
All true - but the little morsel in the back of my mind is the fact that THIS speaker of the House is SECOND in line to Biden right now. THAT is beyond disturbing!! In fact, its pretty scary.
I definitely agree that Dems really need to get off their asses & maybe STICK TOGETHER? I'm talking in the Senate & the House. Being "progressive" is really nifty - but then when the Dems actually come up with a good idea - progressives vote against it? Happened with the most recent border bill.
Voting against something because it isnt perfect? Really? How about actually thinking ahead & trying to do something a little at a time?
I get Tom's frustration (putting it mildly) with polls - but I agree with Fay & Gigi and many others here that how they put the questions & WHO they put them to would be an interesting piece of information to have. I have a landline & dont answer if I dont know the caller on the display - and I get a LOT of those.
The 147 will be greater this time and the spewker of the house is going to be the moderator, or wtf it is of the vote, as Pelosi was. If it gets delayed, Alito is already set up to sign an injunction to stop the vote, as he was in 2020, but foiled by Pelosi calling the Congress back in session just in time and the vote was tallied and accepted, just before Alito could issue the stay. He will have pen in hand this time.
This is all documented by several sources. It's not news though. The next golf tournament is going to be awesome. That is news worthy. Got it?
Yeah well ... your tinfoil hat seems in pretty good shape.
The House per se has very little to do with the count - it's all up to the VP to manage the gig, and Alito had no role. I don't understand your allusion to a golf tournament ... are you assuming that's where my interest is? If so, please go fuck yourself, you misunderestimate me.
Tom, I am right there with you in SPADES. On the first comment a bit ago on Robert, the calm and focussed Hubble's post. Gaaa!! was the gist of what I was saying, but GDMNMFNNSHITHEAD Dip Durbin cowards are not doing their jobs, in order that they be spared when the Kristomfnfascists take over, instead of of standing with us and taking care of business.
I could rant all mfniight about this,.
There is a Democratic Motherfukinmajority in the Senate. The investigative power of the Judiciaryncommittee is there. If the Dems we have in charge would DO something and call thesnoozemedea snakes out and publish something, Perhaps, Maybe Perhaps, haif of the dumbshit latre quaffin fine car schmooozzin Democratic base might, just might wake the fuck UP!
Ransom, you have explained precisely and with well-chosen 'colorful metaphors' exactly why I am not a registered Democrat..... No guts, no glory (and soon no country if they don't get their heads out of their asses). I have already given my max donation to Smokin' Joe, and I'd like to see some sign that the people in charge in the Democratic Party are still alive.....you'd never know it by what they are failing to do to save the country from the other side.....
But they send as many inane emails as the repubs. An investigation could force the MSM to share the screen so that chump isn’t on 24/7. Ye hear that Judiciary Committee.
For decades, the Democrats have played the "nice guy". "When they go low, we go high" as Michelle Obama puts it. Well, ladies and gents, I, personally think it's time we rolled in the pigshit with Marjorie Traitor Goon and tRump and the rest of that god-forsaken party of "Unrenconsrtucted" seditionists. Let's get down and dirty and start spreading ACTUAL FACTS! It's obvious our major media outlets won't do it. I read the WaPo and the NYT daily and want to heave at some of the headlines! And it's time the Democratc Party got some "balls"! The facts speak for themselves - every damn thing TC has said in today's post is TRUE! Don't even get me started on SCOTUS! Thank you, TC, for keeping your finger on the pulse, though it seems that pulse gets weak, sometimes.
This dropped yesterday and I found it a more compelling argument re: inflation than the straight up *greedflation* tag that keeps getting thrown around.
So, there is a provision in federal code that lets people who speculate on the commodities markets to totally remove pricing from foundational principles. The provision goes by the unassuming name “Footnote 563 of the CFTC policy ”. It’s an interesting take and the whole article is worth a read.
I reposted Jonathan's article and some of the comments - this makes a lot of sense and I encourage everyone to read it - and then be enraged that these ghouls would sell us all down the river so they can make an extra buck. Bring back Glass-Steagall I say.....
The only good thing about this is that Biden could threaten Wall Street with the mother of all regulations and they'd call off the dogs long enough for the election to run, and Biden would be reelected.
But, based on Jonathan’s reporting, it seems like the Biden admin has stuck their fingers in their ears and is going “nanana lalala nothing to see here. Kindly fuck off so we can continue to say we are doing everything to combat inflation”. Which, is obviously not the case.
Add to all of the above, by way of reasonably well informed speculation: Most USians don't understand how government works, e.g., which branch is responsible for what and how do laws get enacted. Being steeped in individualism, we tend to think that all the president has to do is snap his fingers and there will be light.
The *overwhelming* majority of USians don't understand how "the economy" works. I include myself here: I know what I don't know, but that's about it. (Come to think about it, does *anyone* understand how "the economy" works? The expert explanations I've read over the years aren't especially convincing.) Many of us did come to understand "supply chains" as COVID-19 got under way, in part because some of the MSM made an effort to explain why so many supermarket shelves were bare and the explanation trickled down to the street.
With this in mind, it's not hard to understand why so many USians think the country's a mess even though they're doing fine or at least OK: they're sure that they are the exceptions and the media gloom and doom is true for everyone they don't know. Short version: Accurate information is hard to get, and if/when you get it, you need at least some prior knowledge, e.g., an understanding of how government works and that the president doesn't control the economy, to make sense of it. Lacking that, it's easy to fall for anyone who serves it up in an easy-to-digest soundbite.
I just turned off CNN after having it on a total of less than 3 minutes.They were yammering on about another idiotic poll than has Biden 2 points behind Trump. I refuse to watch this horsesh*t. We have both cell phones here plus a landline and have never once been called by a pollster.
Problem one is that our MSM has followed Rupert on the money/ power trail. Problem two is the morons on social media. I was one until I got banned for calling out the Goebbels propaganda that Repubs were using, however, I had followers on twitter who were stellar humans. I followed some awesome people and I miss them. One does not have to follow fools and liars - unless you want to or can’ recognize them with a microscope. Problem three is that churches have become political and have abandoned what they claimed to be for. Problem four is green, lots of green. Problem five is that the old bugaboo racism is no longer hiding. They are out and proud. I could go on and on. But Umberto Eco, an Italian writer, summarized it well. “Social media gives legions of idiots the right to speak when they once only spoke at a bar after a glass of wine, without harming the community. Then they were quickly silenced, but now they have the same right to speak as a Nobel Prize winner. It’s the invasion of the idiots.” The platforms, once hard to mount, now let every moron have a say. Sad to say, it’s not just morons and idiots who are ignorant. Some of the ignorant are just plain stupid, for which there is no remedy.
"If not, then it really will be true that the only thing really exceptional about this country is the exceptional moron stupidity of the average American."
I daresay that our country does not value education very highly, based on how we rank compared to other countries, thus Americans in general do not seem to be educated beyond high school, so to be charitable, I'd factor in ignorance more than stupidity. Ignorance is curable though, while stupidity is not.
It can be a curse to be both intelligent and educated, but never confuse the two. I know many with college degrees and higher who lack any critical thinking skills and somehow manage to get through life. Darwinism takes much too long.
Well, of course the economy is totally fucked. You been living under a rock, TC?
The commonsense market has completely collapsed right in front of our eyes, the interest rate in actual facts is almost non-existent due not only to the right-wing echo chambers but to the MSM's manipulation of the market with worthless clickbait, so no real dividends are paid for their pursuit, and there are huge bills coming due for years' and years' worth of deficit spending on fearmongering, hatefulness, lies and misinformation.
Recession my ass. Depression is the order of the day...for anyone with a brain functional enough to be depressed in the first place.
Yes I’ve become a great fan of Rick Wilson and also loved the quotation. I perceive the rub to be that pesky phrase ‘actual fact.’ We’re now living in a universe where if you can actually find an actual fact that most people can agree on…then be really nervous if u believe it. So I’ll give an example. The whole concept of peaceful exchange of power. Wow. I so remember what a quiet treasure that was. How the world could notice that’s what the USA could do reliably. The fact that we have GOP bozos dressed to look like clones of orange monster and rushing to kiss his ring…well to me that says the true horror of where we have landed…it’s worse than any apocalypse we could have envisioned. Much worse— why? Because it’s not going away.
Food prices are and have been very weird for quite some time. Yes this hurts Biden and frankly, I believe what many think of as our pesky inflation has been largely produced by blatant larceny of business taking extra profits where they can get away with it after the huge losses tallied during Covid years.
Right on all points Liz.
They are creating inflation, (greedflation, as Robert Reich calls it), to rile up the masses, as if Biden has any control over what any industry charges, just to pump up Trump to win, so we do not need a destructive, profit wasting insurection to to get the Krystofscist in control for unlimited profits later.
The GOP bozos look like minions out of the movie. They look bizarre, and frankly pathetic. As lawmakers, they have NO business inserting themselves into a criminal trial. Trump's family won't even come to sit with him. Therefore, Trump insists his little minions come be supportive. They didn't come until ordered to do so.
BTW--thanks for the rant, TC.
yeah. for some reason, our "media" has real problems with discussing price gouging. is it possible they do so because the price gougers consider the "content" to be a convenient delivery system for advertising; the advertising, on top of everything else, tends to be flogging new copycat pharmaceuticals, possibly the biggest scam of all.
As I've often said Tom, I have ZERO belief in polls. If they want me to have a modicum of concern fore their "findings" they'd better be prepared to release their question verbatim "Trade Secrets"? Irrelevant what they ask today is yesterdays news tomorrow. Exactly how many persons were in the polls AND which States and which areas in those States were polled. We are a nation of ~340,000,000 people spreading from the Atlantic Coast to Hawaii ~2,286 miles into the Pacific Ocean and Alaska ~ 500 miles north of the mainland. So, how many were polled in each State.
Yes I studied statistics in college - I'm a science major, no choice. But as a science major I also know you can "prove" anything you want with a mouse. (A favorite saying in upper level physiology) Like polls, it's how you choose your subject. When the sugar industry wanted to "prove" saccharine was detrimental to your health, they hired a scientist who purchased a strain of mice susceptible to carcinoma. He fed them 10X the maximum amount of saccharine consumed by a normal human being in one day. Voila! they all came down with cancer.
So you only poll those who don't hang up on you. You ask only questions that have yes or no answers, no explanations allowed. Voila! The poll results you expected.
BLESS YOU FAY!!❤️❤️❤️❤️I have been complaining about polls for so long and you say it so clearly. Please send this letter everywhere you can think of, especially whitehouse.gov
My favorite stupid question is something like “ do you think America is in a good place?” Hell no, but it’s taken as an anti-Biden answer. THREE little words in the report would make such a difference. In a poll OF 1000 PEOPLE.
P.S.—Can we agree to have 1 rant a week then calm down? Our votes are needed in a few months. Stupidity is probably part of the MAGat plan to make us stark raving crazy.
Thank you, Gigi. It's early morning and your post gave me my first laugh of the day
Was it Mark Twain who said, "There are lies, damned lies and statistics"?
Yes!
Thank you Mark, I love that and fully agree with Sam Clemens, his humor was spot on.
One of my favorite quotes attributed to Mark Twain but there is some question as to its actual origins, since 1891... very interesting reading if you wanna go down that rabbithole:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lies,_damned_lies,_and_statistics
This:➡️ “ Yes I studied statistics in college - I'm a science major, no choice. But as a science major I also know you can "prove" anything you want with a mouse.”
The only thing I remember from biostatistics was the prof saying you could “use” statistics to get to your preferred outcome.
Same experience here, as a microbiology major!
Mark Twain was right.
Yes he was.
About so much
Agreed, Mark Twain (Sam Clemens) ad Will Rogers had a plethora of wise observations in easy to remember quips!
Love Will's comment about money trickling up...
This article describes how tffgdonthecon paid a polling company to throw polls his way. The story came out that Cohen had skimmed some of the money but totally ignored that important part. https://www.msnbc.com/opinion/msnbc-opinion/trump-hush-money-trial-business-practices-rcna153736
YUP...
Somewhere Reagan is smiling. We are experiencing the end stage of the plan he set in motion in 1981.
There cannot be enough urine and feces for his grave.
Great rant TC- I appreciate very much your writing.
Sorry to distract you with reality, but Reagan was just a face. Presented to the TV watching intelectual folks who watched GE Theater, hosted by the sweet and calming Ronnie Raygun, to get all adjusted to his loveable persona. General Electric, the largest, deepest dive into what was the Military Industrial Comlpex that required perpetual war, or it's massive preparations to to maintain proffit margins unheard of in an otherwise free market place. He was the face of the globalist Fascist industrial machine that tried the same in the 1920s with another face, Adolf Hitler. The t-Rump of today is only their latest face. Capiche?
I read somewhere that rich Nancy was a big influence. Or her rich family was…
Her rich daddy, and then the head PR guy at GE when he got hired at General Electric Theater. The guy was one of the pro-fascists from back in the 30s.
Had no idea.
One more thing, Don. I'd piss on the motherfuker's grave if I could get there too. I appeciate your fellings. But it is so much more than that smilin'shit for brains.
Read “Democracy in Chains” by Nancy MacLean. The Libertarian fascists organized by Charles Koch have been at this since Nixon’s Watergate sent him in exile. As Hilary Clinton said, it’s a widespread, right-wing conspiracy, 45 years in the making.
“The whole aim of practical politics is to keep the populace alarmed (and hence clamorous to be led to safety) by menacing it with an endless series of hobgoblins, all of them imaginary.”
H. L. Mencken
Not my favorite guy but the quote fits.
Mo fo that he was, he did lay down a few on the. mark and memorable quotables.
Did Reagan actually write that shit?
Reagan was illiterate.
Gary was quoting H.L. Menken. Political commentater of 100 and more years ago.
Actually 60-90 years ago.
Peggy Noonan wrote a lot of it. He had good PR and scriptwriters
Tom, you are so right! I watch the ongoing Fever Dream from my perch in Vancouver, and I wonder how so many Americans became so ignorant. As you say, the fault lies on how they get their information, and how little they seem to dig deeper, when so much information is available. Consuming news from social media is guaranteed to pollute the brain.
My first 21 years were spent in the U.S., and I learned over time how poorly we were taught history, or to think critically. Still, we did take classes in civics, and those who chose to investigate on their own, leaned how much was kept from us. Today, it's sheer laziness that results in the lack of knowledge that permeates the culture.
In the book Megatrends, John Naisbitt wrote "we are drowning in information, but starved for knowledge." He wrote that 42 years ago.
Sadly, the approach to teaching critical thinking that was settled upon by several generations (after mine, or course) was simple. To anything that has science or learned consensus behind it, say "Yeh, but." It caught on to encourage children to question, to doubt authority. We didn't do so well with the critical steps: How to listen to and analyze contrary thought and integrate such added information/evidence so obtained into truthfilled knowledge. We ended up with question generators instead of educated consumers of knowledge. We settled for foxes when we could be flying with eagles.
Truth be told.
Yes he did.
I'm not quite sure why you're in such a twist over this, even assuming that a big percentage of people get their 'news impressions' from social media.
It is completely obvious that 95% of media are conservative (especially AM Radio out in the boonies, but also all the respectable media - the three major broadcast networks, the 4-5 major newspapers, etc), and they look forward to a big 'contest' in November, and they don't mind at all if Trump wins.
But even if 50% of Democrats believe the doomsayers who constantly claim the country is in a disastrous position, they're still not going to vote for Trump in November. (Even setting aside the issue that the president has very little influence over the price of coffee in Peoria).
The Biden campaign team has to convince a healthy percentage of Independents in about six states to vote for Biden - it's a very narrowly focused agenda it seems to me; the result could be as tight as 270-268.
What amazes me more, is that nearly half the population seems prepared to vote for Trump ... have they no decency?
And that 270-268 outcome could be even more dangerous, as Josh Marshall points out today at TPM. They will be MORE LIKELY to attempt a coup that could be successful with a close result.
Indeed ... they tried a coup last time after a pretty solid numerical loss. At least this time Trump doesn't have control of the levers of government, or the military, or law enforcement, and Mike Pence isn't Vice President. But it could still be pretty tense I expect, because non-acceptance of the result is now built into the mix.
All true - but the little morsel in the back of my mind is the fact that THIS speaker of the House is SECOND in line to Biden right now. THAT is beyond disturbing!! In fact, its pretty scary.
I definitely agree that Dems really need to get off their asses & maybe STICK TOGETHER? I'm talking in the Senate & the House. Being "progressive" is really nifty - but then when the Dems actually come up with a good idea - progressives vote against it? Happened with the most recent border bill.
Voting against something because it isnt perfect? Really? How about actually thinking ahead & trying to do something a little at a time?
I get Tom's frustration (putting it mildly) with polls - but I agree with Fay & Gigi and many others here that how they put the questions & WHO they put them to would be an interesting piece of information to have. I have a landline & dont answer if I dont know the caller on the display - and I get a LOT of those.
The 147 will be greater this time and the spewker of the house is going to be the moderator, or wtf it is of the vote, as Pelosi was. If it gets delayed, Alito is already set up to sign an injunction to stop the vote, as he was in 2020, but foiled by Pelosi calling the Congress back in session just in time and the vote was tallied and accepted, just before Alito could issue the stay. He will have pen in hand this time.
This is all documented by several sources. It's not news though. The next golf tournament is going to be awesome. That is news worthy. Got it?
If Democrats retake the House, hey will be responsible for certification.
Yeah well ... your tinfoil hat seems in pretty good shape.
The House per se has very little to do with the count - it's all up to the VP to manage the gig, and Alito had no role. I don't understand your allusion to a golf tournament ... are you assuming that's where my interest is? If so, please go fuck yourself, you misunderestimate me.
AND...the spewker of the House is prepared, with his minions to vote to not certify, regardless of how close it is.
However, if the Ds retake the House, they take office on January 3, and certification is on Jan 6, so all is cool. If they don't...
Tom, I am right there with you in SPADES. On the first comment a bit ago on Robert, the calm and focussed Hubble's post. Gaaa!! was the gist of what I was saying, but GDMNMFNNSHITHEAD Dip Durbin cowards are not doing their jobs, in order that they be spared when the Kristomfnfascists take over, instead of of standing with us and taking care of business.
I could rant all mfniight about this,.
There is a Democratic Motherfukinmajority in the Senate. The investigative power of the Judiciaryncommittee is there. If the Dems we have in charge would DO something and call thesnoozemedea snakes out and publish something, Perhaps, Maybe Perhaps, haif of the dumbshit latre quaffin fine car schmooozzin Democratic base might, just might wake the fuck UP!
Ransom, you have explained precisely and with well-chosen 'colorful metaphors' exactly why I am not a registered Democrat..... No guts, no glory (and soon no country if they don't get their heads out of their asses). I have already given my max donation to Smokin' Joe, and I'd like to see some sign that the people in charge in the Democratic Party are still alive.....you'd never know it by what they are failing to do to save the country from the other side.....
But they send as many inane emails as the repubs. An investigation could force the MSM to share the screen so that chump isn’t on 24/7. Ye hear that Judiciary Committee.
For decades, the Democrats have played the "nice guy". "When they go low, we go high" as Michelle Obama puts it. Well, ladies and gents, I, personally think it's time we rolled in the pigshit with Marjorie Traitor Goon and tRump and the rest of that god-forsaken party of "Unrenconsrtucted" seditionists. Let's get down and dirty and start spreading ACTUAL FACTS! It's obvious our major media outlets won't do it. I read the WaPo and the NYT daily and want to heave at some of the headlines! And it's time the Democratc Party got some "balls"! The facts speak for themselves - every damn thing TC has said in today's post is TRUE! Don't even get me started on SCOTUS! Thank you, TC, for keeping your finger on the pulse, though it seems that pulse gets weak, sometimes.
The vision of pushing their heads into the mud and then holding them there till the struggling stops. Mmmmmm.....
This dropped yesterday and I found it a more compelling argument re: inflation than the straight up *greedflation* tag that keeps getting thrown around.
So, there is a provision in federal code that lets people who speculate on the commodities markets to totally remove pricing from foundational principles. The provision goes by the unassuming name “Footnote 563 of the CFTC policy ”. It’s an interesting take and the whole article is worth a read.
https://thefuckingnews.substack.com/p/exclusive-biden-is-blowing-a-huge?
I reposted Jonathan's article and some of the comments - this makes a lot of sense and I encourage everyone to read it - and then be enraged that these ghouls would sell us all down the river so they can make an extra buck. Bring back Glass-Steagall I say.....
The only good thing about this is that Biden could threaten Wall Street with the mother of all regulations and they'd call off the dogs long enough for the election to run, and Biden would be reelected.
But, based on Jonathan’s reporting, it seems like the Biden admin has stuck their fingers in their ears and is going “nanana lalala nothing to see here. Kindly fuck off so we can continue to say we are doing everything to combat inflation”. Which, is obviously not the case.
Kinda makes you wonder who in high places is investing in commodities futures.....
Another fun tidbit about the CFTC is that the crypto world has been trying to get that agency to “regulate” it at opposed to the SEC. I wonder why? 🤔
Because it lets them become "money" instead of "securities."
I forwarded this on to Popular Information - a blog that is usually ahead of MSM or just reports news they dont!!
Good call! I loooove me some Judd Legum! 😁
Me too - also sent it on to Schumer, Gillibrand & WH.
Do any good? On the other hand, whats to lose?
Thank you for the info -
Schumer loves Wall Street and all their sweet, sweet campaign dollars. He’s a good enough guy, but regulate Wall Street in any appreciable manner? lol
I may have inferred that in my email to him!!
Add to all of the above, by way of reasonably well informed speculation: Most USians don't understand how government works, e.g., which branch is responsible for what and how do laws get enacted. Being steeped in individualism, we tend to think that all the president has to do is snap his fingers and there will be light.
The *overwhelming* majority of USians don't understand how "the economy" works. I include myself here: I know what I don't know, but that's about it. (Come to think about it, does *anyone* understand how "the economy" works? The expert explanations I've read over the years aren't especially convincing.) Many of us did come to understand "supply chains" as COVID-19 got under way, in part because some of the MSM made an effort to explain why so many supermarket shelves were bare and the explanation trickled down to the street.
With this in mind, it's not hard to understand why so many USians think the country's a mess even though they're doing fine or at least OK: they're sure that they are the exceptions and the media gloom and doom is true for everyone they don't know. Short version: Accurate information is hard to get, and if/when you get it, you need at least some prior knowledge, e.g., an understanding of how government works and that the president doesn't control the economy, to make sense of it. Lacking that, it's easy to fall for anyone who serves it up in an easy-to-digest soundbite.
I just turned off CNN after having it on a total of less than 3 minutes.They were yammering on about another idiotic poll than has Biden 2 points behind Trump. I refuse to watch this horsesh*t. We have both cell phones here plus a landline and have never once been called by a pollster.
TC, we’re in the ninety something percentile. (They’re not reading this, anyway. WTF)
Yeah, I know. And I'm not leaving. :-)
Hey Alec, Did you mean Naisbitt or H.L. Menken?
Problem one is that our MSM has followed Rupert on the money/ power trail. Problem two is the morons on social media. I was one until I got banned for calling out the Goebbels propaganda that Repubs were using, however, I had followers on twitter who were stellar humans. I followed some awesome people and I miss them. One does not have to follow fools and liars - unless you want to or can’ recognize them with a microscope. Problem three is that churches have become political and have abandoned what they claimed to be for. Problem four is green, lots of green. Problem five is that the old bugaboo racism is no longer hiding. They are out and proud. I could go on and on. But Umberto Eco, an Italian writer, summarized it well. “Social media gives legions of idiots the right to speak when they once only spoke at a bar after a glass of wine, without harming the community. Then they were quickly silenced, but now they have the same right to speak as a Nobel Prize winner. It’s the invasion of the idiots.” The platforms, once hard to mount, now let every moron have a say. Sad to say, it’s not just morons and idiots who are ignorant. Some of the ignorant are just plain stupid, for which there is no remedy.
"If not, then it really will be true that the only thing really exceptional about this country is the exceptional moron stupidity of the average American."
I daresay that our country does not value education very highly, based on how we rank compared to other countries, thus Americans in general do not seem to be educated beyond high school, so to be charitable, I'd factor in ignorance more than stupidity. Ignorance is curable though, while stupidity is not.
It can be a curse to be both intelligent and educated, but never confuse the two. I know many with college degrees and higher who lack any critical thinking skills and somehow manage to get through life. Darwinism takes much too long.
Thanks Tom.
The economy is fine. If these
dimwitted people would do a
little research and fact
checking of their own,
perhaps they'd quit clutching
their pearls and lamenting
the cost of those t-bones
they buy every week.
Well, of course the economy is totally fucked. You been living under a rock, TC?
The commonsense market has completely collapsed right in front of our eyes, the interest rate in actual facts is almost non-existent due not only to the right-wing echo chambers but to the MSM's manipulation of the market with worthless clickbait, so no real dividends are paid for their pursuit, and there are huge bills coming due for years' and years' worth of deficit spending on fearmongering, hatefulness, lies and misinformation.
Recession my ass. Depression is the order of the day...for anyone with a brain functional enough to be depressed in the first place.